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These three projects will be fully implemented by March 2020, added CEO of the Iranian Investment Petrochemical Group (IIPG) Rasoul Ashrafzadeh in an address to a press conference in the Iranian capital of Tehran on Friday.

Describing the 12-month period to March 2019 as a very difficult year for his complex, he expressed satisfaction over his company’s success to increase its profit generation by 115 percent in the same time span.

He added 25 percent of the company’s profit generation growth in this period pertained to the effective management of the financial costs.

Defining and implementing plans and projects in less developed areas of Iran, such as Lordegan, is a herculean task, the IIPG managing director said.  

Commenting on the development project of Ilam Petrochemical Company, Ashrafzadeh noted that since a month ago, feedstock injection into the gas sweetening unit of the company has successfully begun.

Shifting to the pre-commissioning of the olefin production unit of Ilam Petrochemical Company, he said the project will be inaugurated in early February.

Turning to the development of Lordegan Petrochemical Company, Ashrafzadeh added the utility section of the complex has become operational.

He said the company’s ammonia and urea production units will begin production in September and November respectively and will become fully operational by March 2020.

“The project to construct a potassium sulfate production unit in Orumiyeh Petrochemical Company is 98 percent complete.”

In addition to raising the country’s total production of petrochemicals, once completed, these three projects will reduce environmental pollutants as they help decrease natural gas consumption, he said.

Ashrafzadeh stressed that among the other goals pursued by implementing these three projects are developing the areas in which they are located and creating jobs.

He blamed as a negative aspect of Iran’s petrochemical industry, paying insufficient attention to the downstream sector.

This comes as, the IIPG CEO noted, given the simple technology employed in this sector as well as its high return of capital, ability to create jobs and low construction costs, the downstream sector of the domestic petrochemical industry can be a lucrative target for private investments.

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The Chairman of Iran and the UAE’s Joint Chamber of Commerce Farshid Farzanegan said, “In the current situation, economic and political relations are improving,” .

Farzanegan described peace and security in the region as critical factors for economic development, adding that the UAE also knows that the country’s progress depends on peace in the Persian Gulf.

Tensions in the Persian Gulf would slow down their economic progress, he added.

He further asserted that there is a significant number of economic agents in the UAE, especially in Dubai, many of whom are interested in working with Iran.

The chairman of the Iran-UAE Chamber of Commerce further stated that the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the Trade Promotion Organization (TPO) have put increasing relations with neighboring countries atop their agendas, stressing that the Iran-UAE Chamber of Commerce and the private sector must help those two bodies expand trade ties.

Farzanegan underlined that Dubai’s economy depends on trade relations with Iran, adding that both sides are eager to continue and expand bilateral trade ties.

Iran has always attached great importance to strengthening ties with Middle Eastern countries in a bid to maintain security in the region.

A maritime security delegation from the UAE arrived in Tehran on July 30 to resume bilateral coast guard meetings between Iran and the Arab country after a six-year hiatus, in a bid to increase joint efforts on enhancing maritime security in the Persian Gulf region.

The seven-member delegation from the UAE Coast Guard arrived in Tehran to attend the sixth joint coast guard meeting which was held in line with plans to boost maritime security cooperation between the two Persian Gulf littoral states.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed issues of mutual interest, including shared borders, citizens’ commutes, illegal trafficking, as well as ways to facilitate maritime connections between the two countries.

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Speaking to Reporters, Aziz Akbarian said that following efforts by the Iranian administration and the Parliament, a contract valued at 16 trillion rials ($380 million) was signed between the Defense Ministry and domestic automakers.

According to the deal, the Defense Ministry’s industries will supply 470 types of auto parts that were previously imported, the lawmaker said.

He added that all of the products due to be manufactured by the Defense Ministry are electronic parts.

Last week, a deputy defense minister said the ministry plans to boost cooperation with domestic companies producing auto parts in a bid to counter economic sanctions against the Islamic Republic’s automotive industry.

Back in January, the CEO of Iran’s major car manufacturer Iran Khodro (IKCO) said his company is employing the technology that PSA Peugeot Citroen has brought to Iran, although the French automaker has left the country in light of the US sanctions.

The IKCO chief said his company tries to continue producing the cars that were to be manufactured jointly under the contract with Peugeot even if the French side does not agree to keep the agreement.

In June 2016, Iran Khodro and the French carmaker Peugeot-Citroen (PSA) agreed to launch a joint auto company in Tehran under a joint venture worth 400 million euros.

But in 2018, the French company reneged on the agreement and decided to obey the US sanctions against Tehran by leaving Iran.

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Shahram Adamnejad, a deputy transportation minister, said that major government departments, including Iran’s Ministry of Communications, were contributing to plans to launch satellite Internet service during flights by Iranian carriers.

“Domestic private companies providing satellite services are now capable of offering (in-flight Wi-Fi) services through the hub inside the country and international satellites,” Adamnejad told IRNA, adding that airlines were carrying out feasibility studies on the issue.

The official said a full launch of in-flight Wi-Fi by Iranian airlines would significantly boost entertainment services offered across the transportation system in the country, including on rail and in shipping.

Officials in the Iranian Space Agency said last month that they were working with Iran Civil Aviation Organization to speed up the launch of Internet services during flights by Iranian airlines.

Some Iranian carriers have been offering Internet to their VIP passengers through air-to-ground (ATG) service, a technology which means the service could be very slow in places where the coverage is poor.

Major international airlines have tried to replace the ATG service with satellite-based Internet as they seek better revenues through amenities offered to passengers.

The new technology can also help carriers optimize the use of technical specifications in the cockpit, including those related to routes, weather and maintenance issues.

Plans by Iranian airlines to launch in-flight Wi-Fi come as some of them have suffered in recent years from sanctions imposed by the United States.

Washington has accused Iranian carriers of helping Iran develop its nuclear and missile programs, allegations that have repeatedly been rejected by both aviation and military officials.

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Soltan said at a meeting of the “State and Private Sector Dialogue” in Chabahar on Wednesday, "Chabahar is a golden opportunity for the development of trade in the region, and its entire infrastructure needs to be prepared for investors”.

He said that barriers that hinder development and trade must quickly be resolved so that the national interests of parties are met and the people of the above countries can benefit from this.

The governor of Nimrouz province went on to say that Chabahar is a great opportunity to transit Afghanistan’s goods to different countries.

The Governor of Nimroz said, “We invite the Iranian authorities to travel to Afghanistan to develop relations.”

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According to Sa’d Mohammadi, this figure exceeds the total revenue made in the copper industry last year by more than half.

Sa’d Mohammadi added that presently, $12,500 of investments are needed for every ton of copper in the world, while in Iran, about $8,000 of investments are needed. "Therefore, Iran has a great advantage in terms of investments in the copper industry," he noted.

He said that the sum of investments made to the copper industry by NICIC and other domestic and foreign companies has amounted to €1.8 billion.

The CEO added that it is expected that production will reach 540,000 tons this year due to the commissioning of new projects.

“The current reserves of the NICIC are estimated at 2.2 billion tons of copper. This figure will increase with the discovery of new reserves. Therefore, the currently available reserves will last for 50 years, while the discoveries of new reserves will prolong that period to 100 years,” he said.

Iran produced 298,000 tons of copper during the last Iranian year (ended on March 20, 2019).

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The director of the South Pars Customs Office, Ahmad Pourheidari, said that the figure shows a 23-percent growth in terms of weight and a two-percent rise in terms of value, compared to the same period last year.

Mozambique, South Africa, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and the UAE were the main destinations for Iranian products exported through South Pars customs, he said, adding that Iraq, Afghanistan and Turkey also had land imports from this customs office.

Pourheidari also said that China, Romania, Kyrgyzstan, Taiwan, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Pakistan and Italy were the main importers of Iranian petrochemical products during the one-month period.

Iranian officials have announced that the country exported around $11.5 billion worth of goods and services in the first three months of the Iranian year (March 21-June 21).

The acting head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organization said on July 7 that the amount of exports recorded in the period, which corresponds to the second quarter of 2019, showed almost no growth compared to the similar period last year.

Mohammadreza Mo’doudi said, however, that the value of imports to Iran in the same quarter had decreased around 8.7 percent, to stand at $10.2 billion.

The official would not elaborate on the share of petrochemicals in the total volume of Iran’s exports. However, the stable figures come as Iran has been facing restrictions in trade with its traditional partners as sanctions imposed by the US has made it more difficult for Iranian businesses to access banking services in other countries.

Mo’doudi said that the amount of Iran’s non-oil exports, which also includes products derived from crude oil, should have declined if Iran had not carried out proper investments in megaprojects in the petrochemical and steel industries over the past years.

The official said some 400 out of 8,000 items exported from Iran last year accounted for 95 percent of the total volume of exports from the country.

He said 130 items of those competitive products or services accounted for more than $37 billion worth of Iran’s annual exports.

Mo’doudi said Iran aims to bring the total value of its non-oil exports to $120 billion by 2025, insisting the government needed to empower the exporters through a detailed plan if it wanted to meet the target.

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Sorena Sattari, Iran’s Vice President for Science and Technology, participated at the event.

He noted that 60 percent of the parts required for the Peugeot 301 production would be provided by domestic output, which can be increased to 80 percent in the future.

Sattari also added that about 300 Iranian parts suppliers were hired to manufacture components for this car.

He further added that the sedan Peugeot 301 fully complies with international standards.

Sattari pointed out that Peugeot 301 is produced at IKCO, while the French company Peugeot left Iran as a result of US sanctions.

He added that it was assumed that French companies would provide all parts and equipment necessary for this car production.

“After the French giant Peugeot left Iran, this project was transferred to domestic manufacturers,” Sattari said. He emphasized that the production of this car requires 2,123 parts, adding that Iranian manufacturers made 565 of them.

According to the planned program, the Peugeot 301 will enter the Iranian car market by the end of 2019.

The Peugeot 301 is a compact car, produced by the French automaker Peugeot.

The original 301 is built at Peugeot’s Vigo plant in Spain, alongside its twin Citroen C-Elysee and has been manufactured in China since November 2013, and Nigeria since 2014.

On Sunday, Iranian Industry Minister Reza Rahmani said that despite US efforts to cripple Tehran’s economy, year-on-year comparison shows that the country’s domestic production has increased in the first quarter of the current Iranian year (March 21-June 21).

“US sanctions were imposed to hamper production in Iran, however, we are proud to announce that after 14 months of sanctions, the area has grown one percent in the first three months of the present Iranian year (starting March 21), in comparison with the corresponding period in last year,” Rahmani was quoted as saying by Fars News Agency.

“We did not let production decrease and that is a victory despite the difficulties we have had under sanctions,” he added.

The minister underlined that the government seeks to increase exports under the current conditions and called for providing the ground for investors.

French carmaker PSA said on Monday that its sales slumped in the first half of the year as it pulled out of Iran and sales in China plunged by nearly two-thirds.

Half of the overall 12.8 percent drop in sales by the maker of Peugeot, Citroen, DS, Opel and Vauxhall brands to 1.9 million vehicles was due to halting operations in Iran to avoid falling foul of US sanctions on the country.

While the Chinese car market has been shrinking since last year, PSA has been hammered, with its sales plummeting by just over 60 percent to 64,000 vehicles in China and Southeast Asia.

Allied with its top investor, Chinese carmaker Dongfeng, PSA sold 742,000 vehicles in China in 2014, but sales have since spiraled lower as consumer tastes shifted.

PSA said it “is working on action plans with its partners to tackle current issues and lower the breakeven point” of its joint ventures in China, where foreign carmakers are required to work with local partners.

Sales in several other emerging markets were also hit hard, dropping by nearly 45 percent in Turkey and by half in Argentina.

PSA managed to resist a dip in European car sales, increasing its market share, thanks in part to Citroen, which managed to tempt more buyers.

With 1.68 million vehicles sold in Europe, the region now accounts for 88 percent of PSA’s overall sales, an increase of 11 percentage points from the same period last year.

Echoing a similar sense of economic progress on Sunday, the Director General of Port and Maritime Organization of Hormuzgan Province Allah Morad Afifipour announced that Iran’s first quarter non-oil exports from the southern port of Shahid Rajaei have increased by 10 percent compared with the corresponding period last year.

An increasing trend has been reported from other Iranian customs gates for the same three-month period.

Also on Sunday, the head of Markazi Customs Administration, Esmaeil Hosseini, said that more than 225 million dollars’ worth of non-oil commodities have been exported from the central Iranian province of Markazi in the first three months of the current local calendar year, which shows a year-on-year increase of four percent.

More than 381,479 tons of non-oil commodities have been exported from Markazi Province in the three-month period, Hosseini said.

He added that the figures show a four-percent growth in terms of value, and a 12-percent decline in terms of tonnage, compared with the same period last year.

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The MoU was signed between Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO) and the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade.

IDRO was represented by its Executive Board Chairman Mohammad Baqer Ali, who signed the agreement with Czech Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Eduard Muřický in Tehran.

The MoU will pave the way for the creation of a working group between the two countries.

The two officials agreed to use the maximum potential of both sides’ government and private sectors in auto-making, rail transport, new technologies as well as energy industries.

The MoU also calls for launching of Iran-Czech joint-venture companies to boost industrial investment opportunities and renovate the industrial and manufacturing process-shipbuilding.

IDRO’s head of executive board, who is also deputy minister of industry, mine and trade, also urged the two governments to facilitate effective communication between their Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).

On Tuesday, in the opening ceremony of Iran-Czech economic commission meeting in Tehran, Iranian Deputy Economy Minister Seyed Ali Mohammad Mousavi said that Tehran and Prague will study the expansion of banking cooperation and investment opportunities in areas of industry, mine, commerce, health and treatment in a bid to further bolster economic ties.

Mousavi said that Iran and Czech are to study the expansion of banking cooperation, investment opportunity, industry, mine, commerce, health and treatment in the upcoming meeting of the Iran-Czech joint economic cooperation commission.

He also called for expansion of mutual economic cooperation, bolstering cooperation between the two sides’ private sectors mainly in industry and rendering services.

The two sides examined various issues ranging from banking to investment opportunities and easing visa issuance between the two countries in the meeting.

Muřický, for his part in the meeting, highlighted good political and economic relations and cooperation between the two countries and called for further expansion of cooperation in these fields.

There are many companies mainly in the energy sector who mind to broaden cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran, Muřický said.

In April 2018, The Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic supported a plan to lift a ban on the export of equipment to the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran.

The decision by the Czech Parliament came after the online Czech newspaper ‘Prague Daily Monitor’ wrote that the continuation of the ban on the transfer of equipment to Bushehr nuclear power plant would prevent normalization of relations between Tehran and Prague that is detrimental to Czech exports.

The Czech Communist Party had tried since 2009 to have the 18-year-long ban on export of equipment to Iran lifted. In 2016, the Communist Party tried again to get the ban removed.

The Czech company ZVVZ Milevsko planned to deliver ventilation equipment to Bushehr nuclear power plant and for this reason the Communist Party had proposed that all restrictions and obstacles facing the company be removed.

The issue was raised at a Czech cabinet session in March 2018 but the Prague government adopted a neutralized stance. Some persons and groups believe that the reason for this is that the Czech government is afraid of harming its relations with some of its allies, including the US, if it agrees to lift the ban.

However, it seems that the Czech Chamber of Deputies decided to follow the country's foreign policy principles independent of the US.

The former coalition government of the Czech Republic tried to lift the ban in 2017, but Parliament blocked its move. The Czech Foreign Ministry supports the plan to lift the restrictions on export of equipment to Bushehr power plant.

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